


Daughters of Destiny

by GrandMasterPreast



Category: The Hobbit (Jackson Movies), The Hobbit - All Media Types, The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Arkenstone - Freeform, Arrogant Thorin Oakenshield, Bard plays hard to get?, Explicit Language, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Fíli and Kíli Live, Like late 30s and mid 40s, Older OCs, Silmarils, Stubborn Dwarves, Thorin Is an Idiot, Thorin Oakenshield Lives, Thorin is an asshole, Tolkien, Tolkien-Lore, Violence, may add more tags as the story progresses
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-27
Updated: 2020-04-27
Packaged: 2021-03-01 18:33:34
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,404
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23881603
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GrandMasterPreast/pseuds/GrandMasterPreast
Summary: Born and raised in the mountains and being a Marine for a good 27 years, reaching the rank of Colonel, Abigail Black knows what she is doing, thank you very much. Her 45 years of living have taught her many things, and her days as a Staff Sergeant at Paris Island taught her a great deal of patience… or so she assumed. Dealing with dwarves tends to eat at even the strongest willed former drill instructors. Though, just because she was a drill instructor, and is a battle-torn Marine Colonel who is also a renowned sniper, doesn’t mean she doesn’t have dreams, or fantasies, or fandoms. Will she and her spotter, Sergeant Major Orisa Byrne who also happens to be a fan of Tolkien, though not as versed in Tolkien history as Black, be able to control themselves when they find they have been thrown into Middle Earth, or will they both hardcore geek out? Will Black lose herself completely over a frustratingly handsome and arrogantly stubborn dwarf king? What about Byrne, will she be able to convince a tired and lonely bowman to let himself love again?
Relationships: Bard the Bowman/Original Female Character(s), Thorin Oakenshield/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 16





	Daughters of Destiny

_I often have dreams, dreams not of this place, not of my own world. They are not usual dreams, not dreams one would tell others about. For others may not understand the way I feel, what I see, what it means. Or, what I think it means. I tried to speak with my therapist about them, but he only said they were my sub-conscious trying to escape itself by creating images of a life I wish I could live. A life away from my current hardships, where my traumas didn’t exist, didn’t control me. In these dreams, I’m flying, or maybe I’m falling. I’m not completely sure, but I do know that I. Am. Free._

**”Black, target moving into position, do you have a visual?”** Colonel Black huffed as her radio crackled in her ear.

**“Not yet, Kenway. If you had let me pick my own nest, we would be sipping on Mai Tais by now.”** There was a pause on the other end of the radio, Black smirked as she could _feel_ the General sigh in exasperation. Her spotter next to her, Sergeant Major Byrne, grinned as she looked through her own scope.

**“We talked about this, Black. The nest you wanted to occupy is too far from the extraction point. If something goes wrong, we wouldn’t be able to get you two out of there.”** Black ignored the General for a moment to check in with her spotter.

“Any change Sergeant?” Black kept her eyes down her sights but spoke to the E-9 next to her.

“No, Colonel. Distance to target, 1500 meters; elevation, 10 meters, third floor, southeast window; wind speeds 5 mph. Target is alone and pacing the room, if he keeps to his pattern, he should be passing the window in four minutes.” Black, impressed with the Sergeant as always, grins down her scopes as she finally answers the General.

**“This is me we are talking about, since when does anything ever go wrong?”** This time the General opened the radio line to openly laugh in Black’s ear while Byrne was trying her best not to, though the smirk on her face gave away her amusement. Black would have smacked her if her sights weren’t already in position and her target so close.

**“Don’t get cocky, Black, remember Vegas?”** Black practically growled this time.

**“Poker doesn’t count, Haytham.”** There was a chuckle in her ear this time.

**“That’s Kenway* to you, Black, don’t forget we’re still on a mission.”** Black huffed and pulled in a breath.

“Speaking of.” At the last word, her target came into her sights, and without hesitation, she pulled the trigger, she got a "Confirmed kill," from next to her and they were both up and moving quickly, Black slinging her rifle over her shoulder as she went. Byrne collected the shell casing and erased their footsteps as they exited the nest.

**“We are getting reports in, Weber has been assassinated, well done Black, Byrne.”** The two Marines turned and headed down the opposite side of the slope intent on getting as far from this place as they could.

**“Your praise is much appreciated, sir, but about that extraction, we are going to need that soon!”** There was a pause on the other end.

**“Of course, head to the extraction point, we are working on getting the chopper there.”** The sight of the nest may not have been where Black would have preferred it to be, but it was still a good distance from their target. Colonel Abigail Black and her spotter, Sergeant Major Orisa Byrne were well known for their long-range shots, pushing the limits of the range of Black’s rifle nearly every time, purposefully. This gave them the advantage of distance from the target, though it did make the shots more difficult, and thus more satisfying when successful, it also gave them a head start getting away from the scene.

Despite having close to a mile head start, the duo didn’t dilly dally on their way down the slope and when they reached the bottom, they headed southwest to the extraction point on a flat plateau over the next hillside.

**“Black, do you copy?”** Heeding the tone of the General’s voice, Black continued on her course, picking up the pace slightly, Byrne doing the same as she surveyed the area with her M4 ready.

**“Go ahead.”** Given the gravity of the situation, the General did not comment on the relaxed and informal answer, instead, he had a shred of bad news for the sniper team.

**“There has been a… complication. The chopper was intercepted by German pilots. They have been forced to land at a German airbase 40 miles north of your position.”** Black’s stride hesitated for half a moment and she cursed under her breath before turning 45 degrees to her right and heading directly west of the sniper’s nest and towards the nearest ridge, pointing it out to Byrne when she gave a confused look to her superior.

**“What are you saying, Haytham, have we been discovered?”** Black noticed the side look she got from Byrne but ignored it. Her and Byrne have been working together for several months now, quickly becoming known as one of the best sniper teams the Marines have ever produced. They gained the name the Brûlure Noire, which Black thought was cheesy and cliché since it was French and literally meant Black Burn. Byrne was only a Sergeant Major, and nothing had gone wrong on their previous missions. This development worried the younger of the two, and although Black was concerned as well, she had been serving longer and was able to hide it better. Byrne was only 31, 14 years younger than Black, and was less experienced in dealing with complications while on a mission.

**“No, I don’t believe so. It was a routine training run the Germans were performing when they just so happened upon our chopper. They requested the chopper land at the nearest airbase for inspection, and we are currently negotiating with them for the release of the pilot and their craft.”** With no immediate threat to themselves, Black was able to relax a little, though she kept up the pace.

**“So, they are a prisoner then?”**

**“We had no reason to be in German airspace, no legal reason that is, and because of this, they are suspicious, especially with Lt. Weber’s assassination nearby. We are attempting to avoid an incident with the Germans right now. I’m sorry, but until the chopper is released, you’re on your own.”** Black cursed again and increased her pace to a jog, Byrne doing the same to keep up, their ghillie suits flopping from their actions. They were hoping to find a shadowed place to hunker down in the rocks on top of the ridge off to the west.

**“We will keep out of sight, for now, just keep us apprised of the situation, Haytham.”** They both started up the rock face, Black ignoring the weight of her rifle clacking against the back of her legs, and Byrne letting her M4 hang by her side as she climbed.

**“Of course.”**

**“And Haytham? You better not leave us behind.”**

**“Never. Besides, you still owe me $20, Black.”** Black grinned and continued to climb, the two of them silencing their radios when they reached the top until the next check-in. This ridge had many places they could easily hide from view from below and above. However, if anyone ventured up the ridge, they would no doubt find them. Black chose a spot in the middle of a few rock pillars, a large boulder covering the north, and a rock slab creating a cover from any aircraft flying above. The boulder and the pillars would give enough cover that if any Germans ventured near on foot, they would be able to pick them off one by one.

It wasn’t until nightfall came, and they had changed from their ghillie suits to their field uniforms and tactical vests that they peeked out from their spot. A fire would draw too much attention, as would a flashlight, so both Marines reached into their packs and pulled out their night-vision goggles and donned them upon their heads. The immediate area was clear of anyone, as was the lower ridge. From on top of the ridge, Black could see the sniper’s nest. It was empty, just as they left it, no shell casings, no footprints, no suspicious figures looking for any sign a sniper had been there. Farther east she could see the compound where their recent target had taken up residence, the searchlights were on looking for any sign of movement outside their base, and military vehicles were zipping this way and that.

This German military base was an illegal operation, it wasn’t supposed to exist, and the Germans knew this, so it seemed they were trying to pack up as quick as they could due to the death of their CO. They looked to be too preoccupied with evacuating their non-existent base than checking the area for the sniper, so it made it all too easy for Black and Byrne to slip from the rock ridge and continue heading west. There was a small German town about 15 miles away, very near the border of France. It would be easy to slip into the French country as the Germans didn’t guard their borders here as closely as other points of convergence for fear of drawing too much attention to such a sparsely populated area.

Every communication between the Colonel and the General ended the same way. They were still negotiating the release of their pilot, the Germans getting more and more suspicious of their presence in their airspace near the assassination site of one of their Lieutenants. Given that their base was an illegal operation they were running under the nose of the United Nations, it was difficult for them to have any concrete evidence that the United States Marine Corps was there for a covert military strike against one of their officers. They would be incriminating themselves if they tried to make a full case.

Colonel Black gave the General her plans to head for the German town and to sneak into the French countryside through their less guarded borders there, and he agreed it was best, they could send another chopper from a French Marine base close to the border. Their last communication confirmed that another chopper was headed their way and would meet them on the west side of the France-Germany border. It would take a couple more hours to reach the town, so they continued moving at a steady but speedy pace, keeping an eye on their surroundings for any sign of movement.

Black knew something was out there, could feel it in her bones. Over 25 years of military service sharpened her senses, giving her an impeccable ability to notice when something was off. Nature was already pretty quiet here, there wasn’t much in terms of wildlife, but everything still felt too silent. The wind had died down, the natural thrumming of the earth beneath their feet had ceased, even her heartbeat had silenced, though she felt it thumping against her collar.

Black slowed her movements, Byrne following, and eventually, they came to a stop to listen, Black turning her head this way and that to look out over the terrain. There wasn’t anything there, not that she could see, and her night-vision goggles were the newest tech, highly efficient, but still, the feeling of being watched, of being stalked, of being _hunted_ was crawling up her spine. It made her uneasy enough to pull her sidearm from its holster on her right thigh, bring it up and bend her knees slightly as she started to creep forward.

“Colonel?” Black put her finger to her lips to silence the Sergeant, the younger instead following her CO’s lead and bending her knees to keep her footsteps soft and quiet. Silent footfalls from their own boots were all that could be heard until a thump to their right caught their attention and they spun to aim at nothing. There was another thump, behind them this time, and they turned, and again, found nothing. The thump happened twice more, one after another, like the heartbeat of a dying patient, this time it was directly in Black’s ear, as if it was her own heart pulled from her body and held to the side of her head. Black crouched now, her left knee braced on the dry dirt, her sidearm still aiming into the night. She grabbed Byrne’s arm and pulled her down with her, thanking the stars that the girl had enough sense to keep quiet when she did.

It was there, she still couldn’t see it, but she could feel it now. The being's breath, the thumping she was hearing was its jaws snapping together. Suddenly, a gust of wind howled by with such force it threw both of them to the ground, and along with it came the sound of some creature snarling so viciously, it was like nothing they had ever heard! Black hadn’t realized she closed her eyes when she landed on the ground, but when she opened them, she cried out at the brightness that filtered into her goggles and she had to rip them from her head. A shout of pain from Byrne indicated that the sun had assaulted her eyes through her goggles as well. They had to ignore the fact that the sun was now shining brightly above them as they could finally see whatever creatures had been hunting them.

Walking in a circle around them was a small pack of oversized and disgustingly hideous looking wolves with thin hindquarters and even thinner snouts. These creatures looked suspiciously like Gundabad Wargs and this was another detail that had to be ignored because the creatures, seeming startled by them for some reason, had recovered from their surprise, as had the beings riding them.

“You! What are you?! Where did you come from?! Where are the humans that were just here?!” As they both stood, Byrne, aimed her M4 at the creatures and Black had her sidearm aimed at them as well. The Colonel looked up at the rider that had spoken, instantly recognizing the deformed features of an Orc. 

“Why should I answer you, Orc, you’re just going to try and kill us either way.” If he was taken back by the calmness of the Colonel’s voice, then he did not show it as the Warg he was riding jumped at Black and snapped its jaws in intimidation. Black did not fall prey to the intimidation, instead, she raised her sidearm to the Warg’s head, her and Byrne now back to back.

“Colonel?!” Black ignored Byrne, instead, she concentrated on the Orc that had spoken to them, he seemed to be the one in charge.

“I would be overjoyed to shoot your dog in the head, Orc, and believe me when I say you do not want to know the power behind my weapon.” It felt silly for the Colonel to be saying these things, but in life-threatening situations, as this most definitely was, one is forced to adapt, and often in strange ways.

“Oh, but maybe I do. Show me, woman, what special power you hold.” Since taking off her goggles, Colonel Black had been counting the number of Wargs surrounding them while distracting the one in her main line of vision. Five in total, not a large pack, that is for sure, but they could easily be dangerous enough to overthrow them if they were smart enough to all rush at the same time. Black continued to stare down the Orc and the Warg in front of her, weighing her options. She could shoot the Warg first, and while the Orc was recovering, she could attempt to take down a second. Byrne was an excellent shot with her M4 and would be able to take down two of them easily, and possibly the last as well. Their riders would be easier to dispense without their mounts to aid them and the four-legged creatures would be easier to hit, especially at a close range such as this. They could easily overpower them with their combat knives after downing the canine-like creatures so as not to waste the ammunition.

While she was thinking and planning their next move, it seemed the Orc did not have the patience to wait and made their decision himself. He spurred his creature forward, but before it took one step, the Colonel pulled the trigger, putting a bullet between its eyes. The animal fell with a screech cut off by a dying brain and a shout from its rider. As soon as she heard the first gunshot, Byrne pulled the trigger of her M4, a three-round burst taking down the first Warg in her sights and immediately moving the barrel to the next, pulling the trigger again. The other riders were startled by the sound of the guns and seeing three of their Wargs fall so easily, their own charges jumping back a leap at the loud bang of gunpowder. Black gave them no time to get their bearings or to charge as the first Warg had tried and turned to put a bullet in the neck of another creature. 

There was only one Warg left, and this one was apprehensive to even attempt to approach the women. It was snarling, snapping its teeth together, but it was taking small steps back, unsure of itself. They had never seen such weapons before, they did not require the time a bow did when notching and drawing an arrow, nor did they possess a blade as a sword did. Whatever these weapons were, they were able to kill four of its companions in less than half a minute, this last Warg did not want to take the chance. It turned and ran, kicking up dust as it went and leaving the other Orcs behind, all of which were just now standing after their beasts had fallen. Not letting the last one get away, Black took one more shot with her sidearm, an M9 9MM, and the Warg went tumbling to the ground with a screech.

“Wench!” The first Orc cried out as he tried to rush them, but Byrne removed her combat knife and threw it into the Orc’s chest from behind Black since she was still aiming at the Warg that had tried to flee. The blade forced the Orc’s soon to be lifeless body to the ground as the others tried to rush them as well. Black dropped her M9 to its holster on her thigh and pulled her combat knife out just as one Orc swung its blade at her. She used her left arm to block him at his elbow and plunged her knife into his neck. Black turned them and kicked her foot into the gurgling Orc’s chest, her knife was yanked from his neck as it sent him falling back into one of the other Orcs who was about to jump on Byrne’s back. Byrne was grappling with the fifth Orc, one of her hands holding his fist in the air as it gripped his sword, trying to bring the blade down on her. His other hand had tried to reach for her neck, but she had that one held in a wrist lock.

Black rushed over to the Sergeant and introduced her knife to the Orc’s ribcage, the blade puncturing in between the bone and up into whatever vital organs were housed behind an Orc’s breastplate. She removed her knife and they threw his body to the ground when he went limp and turned to the other Orcs, one of which was untangling himself from his dead companion and standing up to face the women. The last Orc was the one that had tried to flee but decided to come back and join them now that his mount was dead.

“You’re going to pay for what you’ve done!” Black cocked her head to the side, but it was Byrne who huffed.

“What we’ve done? We’ve defended ourselves; it isn’t our fault you aren’t adequate enough to do the same.” Black grinned in amusement and pride at her charge as the final two Orcs looked at the bodies around them and then at the two Marines before growling and running forward, one jumping in the air at Black, the other dropping dead when Byrne raised her rifle to him and fired. Black grunted as she was forced to the ground by the Orc landing on her, but she used her momentum to plant her boots on his chest and roll backward, throwing him off of her. He landed on top of a Warg’s body with a pained scream and rolled off, ending up on his back on the ground, Black’s combat knife protruding from his chest. Both girls took a deep breath as they looked around them; all five Wargs and their riders were dead.

“No wonder Saruman created the Uruk-hai for his army, you guys are just pathetic, and you’re not supposed to be real, so why…?” Byrne crouched down and poked the Orc at her feet as her superior walked past her.

“It probably wasn’t the best idea to bait them like that, Sergeant. We don’t know what the hell is going on right now, what these things are, where we are, or what happened. A little more caution would be advised.” Black moved over to her most recent kill to retrieve her combat knife, Byrne doing the same with her own blade. They didn’t have anything to clean the black-blood-soaked blades, so they used the grass at their feet, sheathing them when they were mostly free of the Orc blood. 

“Right, sorry, Colonel, but these things, they are Wargs, and Orcs, they aren’t supposed to be real.” Black sighed and kicked one of the Wargs in the head, then she walked over and picked up the night-vision goggles they had been wearing, handing Byrne her pair.

“I know, Sergeant. There is no explanation I can think of at the moment that would make sense. Either we are both hallucinating the same thing, we are both dead and experiencing the same after-life, or…” Black paused and looked around her, then down at herself, checking her body and equipment, adjusting her uniform to be presentable.

“Or we are really in Middle Earth, somehow. Do you really believe in the after-life, ma’am?” Black smirked and looked back at Byrne.

“No, I don’t. I didn’t believe in parallel universes either, but that can be the only explanation for all of this, it can’t be a hallucination.” Byrne cocked her head to the side until Black showed the Sergeant her arm where a gash was bleeding through her uniform.

“Oh shit, your bleeding!” Black chuckled and removed her pack, setting it on the ground, Byrne doing the same. The younger opened her pack and removed the first-aid kit, intent on cleaning her SO’s arm and getting it bandaged.

“We should check these bodies for supplies, if we are in Middle Earth, we need to keep heading west. We’ll be able to get our bearings once we find a recognizable landmark.” Byrne didn’t respond, only cleaned Black’s wound after she removed her jacket, then wrapped it and they were able to search the bodies. They found a water pouch on each of them, and another pouch on three of them that was filled with red meat of some kind. These guys were suited for a long journey, which means they have most likely come from the East, possibly from Gundabad itself. Though, that would indicate that Gundabad was real… but then, these guys were real, proof of that was easy to see when Black had kicked one of the dead Wargs in the head and felt the weight of its skull in the tip of her boot.

Having forgotten about the radio set in her ear, Black reached up to turn it on and instantly regretted it as a high-pitched static assaulted her eardrum from the earpiece.

“Fuck!” She yanked the tech from her ear and glared at it before turning it back off.

“Well, you are going to be useless.” Byrne grinned and watched her SO throw the earpiece into her bag along with her night-vision goggles, a couple of water pouches, and two of the meat pouches. Byrne put the other pouches into her pack, and they closed them up, repositioned them on their backs, and kept their rifles in their hands. The immediate vicinity was clear of threats, but it had changed from where they were walking before.

When the sun had been down, they were walking through Western Germany; there was a lot of dirt, and patches of green, but not many trees in the area they had been occupying. Now there was. The dirt below their boots was softer, and it felt more alive, healthier even. The patches of green were larger and denser, and trees surrounded them. That was when Black noticed they were in a meadow of sorts and they were unable to see the rocky ridge they had hidden on back East. Really, they couldn’t see anything over the trees, so Black lead them over to the nearest one and pointed to the trunk.

“You’re a better climber than me, and your rifle is lighter, head to the top, and see what is out west if anything.” Byrne let her M4 hang at her side, removed her pack, and started to climb. Near the top, she used her spotting scope to survey the area. To the East she could see more clearings, the trees thinning out somewhat, but to the west, they seemed to get thicker until they broke completely. She could barely make out the side of a high fence, or possibly a barrier of some kind. It was man-made and it looked like a town was on the other side of it. Byrne relayed this information to her SO when she reached the ground again and after putting her pack back on, they headed in that direction.

*Yes, I did name the General Haytham Kenway… I enjoy putting Easter Eggs into my work… and Haytham is my favorite character from Assassin’s Creed so deal with it!

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Please leave a comment about what you thought! I am always looking for constructive feedback, it makes me a better writer! A friend of mine suggested I do a couple more chapters before the first one I did, establishing the girls in their world, their love for Tolkien, and all of that before sending them into Tolkien's world. I felt that my readers would lose interest if the characters of Tolkien's world weren't introduced into the story quickly. I know fanfiction readers are here for the characters they already love, so that was my reason for throwing them into Middle Earth so quickly, if you think I should have taken my friend's advice, please let me know!


End file.
